We provide five examples of conformal geometries which are naturally associated with ordinary differential equations (ODEs). The first example describes a one-to-one correspondence between the Wuenschmann class of 3rd order ODEs considered modulo contact transformations of variables and (local) 3-dimensional conformal Lorentzian geometries. The second example shows that every point equivalent class of 3rd order ODEs satisfying the Wuenschmann and the Cartan conditions define a 3-dimensional Lorentzian Einstein-Weyl geometry. The third example associates to each point equivalence class of 3rd order ODEs a 6-dimensional conformal geometry of neutral signature. The fourth example exhibits the one-to-one correspondence between point equivalent classes of 2nd order ODEs and 4-dimensional conformal Fefferman-like metrics of neutral signature. The fifth example shows the correspondence between undetermined ODEs of the Monge type and conformal geometries of signature $(3,2)$. The Cartan normal conformal connection for these geometries is reducible to the Cartan connection with values in the Lie algebra of the noncompact form of the exceptional group $G_2$. All the examples are deeply rooted in Elie Cartan's works on exterior differential systems.
We compute the Hilbert polynomial and the Poincare function counting the number of fixed jet-order differential invariants of conformal metric structures modulo local diffeomorphisms, and we describe the field of rational differential invariants separating generic orbits of the diffeomorphism pseudogroup action. This resolves the local recognition problem for conformal structures.
For a hypersurface V of a conformal space, we introduce a conformal differential invariant I = h^2/g, where g and h are the first and the second fundamental forms of V connected by the apolarity condition. This invariant is called the conformal quadratic element of V. The solution of the problem of conformal rigidity is presented in the framework of conformal differential geometry and connected with the conformal quadratic element of V. The main theorem states: Let n \geq 4 and V and V' be two nonisotropic hypersurfaces without umbilical points in a conformal space C^n or a pseudoconformal spa…
In the study of conformal geometry, the method of elliptic partial differential equations is playing an increasingly significant role. Since the solution of the Yamabe problem, a family of conformally covariant operators (for definition, see section 2) generalizing the conformal Laplacian, and their associated conformal invariants have been introduced. The conformally covariant powers of the Laplacian form a family $P_{2k}$ with $k \in \mathbb N$ and $k \leq \frac{n}{2}$ if the dimension $n$ is even. Each $P_{2k}$ has leading order term $(- Δ)^k$ and is equal to $ (- Δ) ^k$ if the metric is fl…
For a finite reflection subgroup $G\leq O(n+1,1,\mR)$ of the conformal group of the sphere with standard conformal structure $(S^n,[g_0])$, we geometrically derive differential-difference Dunkl version of the series of conformally invariant differential operators with symbols given by powers of Laplace operator. The construction can be regarded as a deformation of the Fefferman-Graham ambient metric construction of GJMS operators.
We compute the quotient of the self-duality equation for conformal metrics by the action of the diffeomorphism group. We also determine Hilbert polynomial, counting the number of independent scalar differential invariants depending on the jet-order, and the corresponding Poincaré function. We describe the field of rational differential invariants separating generic orbits of the diffeomorphism pseudogroup action, resolving the local recognition problem for self-dual conformal structures.
We present a novel approach to the classification of conformally equivariant differential operators on spinors in the case of homogeneous conformal geometry. It is based on the classification of solutions for a vector-valued system of partial differential equations, associated to $\mathcal{D}$-modules for the homogeneous conformal structure and controlled by the spin Howe duality for the orthogonal Lie algebras.
We study conformal symmetry breaking differential operators which map differential forms on $\mathbb{R}^n$ to differential forms on a codimension one subspace $\mathbb{R}^{n-1}$. These operators are equivariant with respect to the conformal Lie algebra of the subspace $\mathbb{R}^{n-1}$. They correspond to homomorphisms of generalized Verma modules for ${\mathfrak so}(n,1)$ into generalized Verma modules for ${\mathfrak so}(n+1,1)$ both being induced from fundamental form representations of a parabolic subalgebra. We apply the F-method to derive explicit formulas for such homomorphisms. In par…
FLRW embeddings in $\mathbb{R}^{n+2}$, differential geometry and conformal photon propagator
Université Paris Cité（巴黎西岱大学）；Université de Corse – CNRS UMR 6134 SPE（科西嘉大学 - 法国国家科学研究中心 SPE联合研究单位）；APC-Astroparticule et Cosmologie (UMR-CNRS 7164)（天体粒子与宇宙学研究所 (UMR-CNRS 7164)）
We consider codimension 2 sphere congruences in pseudo-conformal geometry that are harmonic with respect to the conformal structure of an orthogonal surface. We characterise the orthogonal surfaces of such congruences as either $S$-Willmore surfaces, quasi-umbilical surfaces, constant mean curvature surfaces in 3-dimensional space forms or surfaces of constant lightlike mean curvature in 3-dimensional lightcones. We then investigate Bryant's quartic differential in this context and show that generically this is divergence free if and only if the surface under consideration is either superconfo…
This paper completes the construction of arbitrary order conformally invariant differential operators in higher spin spaces. Jan Slovák has classified all conformally invariant differential operators on locally conformally flat manifolds. We complete his results in higher spin theory by giving explicit expressions for arbitrary order conformally invariant differential operators, where by conformally invariant we mean equivariant with respect to the conformal group of $\mathbb{S}^m$ acting in Euclidean space $\mathbb{R}^m$. We name these the fermionic operators when the order is odd and bosonic…
On a 6-dimensional, conformal, oriented, compact manifold $M$ without boundary, we compute a whole family of differential forms $Ω_6(f,h)$ of order 6, with $f,h \in C^\infty(M).$ Each of these forms will be symmetric on $f,$ and $h,$ conformally invariant, and such that $\int_M f_0 Ω_6(f_1,f_2)$ defines a Hochschild 2-cocycle over the algebra $C^\infty(M).$ In the particular 6-dimensional conformally flat case, we compute the unique one satisfying $\Wres(f_0[F,f][F,h]) = \int_M f_0Ω_6(f,h)$ for $(\cH,F)$ the Fredholm module associated by A. Connes \cite{Con1} to the manifold $M,$ and $\Wres$ t…
We show that, for both the conformal and projective groups, all the differential invariants of a generic surface in three-dimensional space can be written as combinations of the invariant derivatives of a single differential invariant. The proof is based on the equivariant method of moving frames.
A conformal map from a Riemann surface to the Euclidean four-space is explained in terms of its twistor lift. A local factorization of a differential of a conformal map is obtained. As an application, the factorization of a differential provides an upper bound of the area of a super-conformal map around a branch point.
On conformal manifolds of even dimension $n\geq 4$ we construct a family of new conformally invariant differential complexes. Each bundle in each of these complexes appears either in the de Rham complex or in its dual. Each of the new complexes is elliptic if the signature is Riemannian. We also construct gauge companion operators which complete the exterior derivative to a conformally invariant and (in the case of Riemannian signature) elliptically coercive system. These (operator,gauge) pairs are used to define finite dimensional conformally stable form subspaces which are are candidates for…
This paper introduces a complex representation for spacelike surfaces in the Lorentz-Minkowski space $L^4$, based in two complex valued functions which can be assumed to be holomorphic or anti-holomorphic. When the immersion is contained in quadrics of $L^4$, the representation then allows us to obtain interesting partial differential equations with holomorphic or anti-holomorphic parameters, within which we find the partial Riccati Equation. Using then theory of holomorphic complex functions we construct explicitly new local solutions for those PDEs together with its associated geometric solu…
We present Bernstein-Sato identities for scalar-, spinor- and differential form-valued distribution kernels on Euclidean space associated to conformal symmetry breaking operators. The associated Bernstein-Sato operators lead to partially new formulae for conformal symmetry breaking differential operators on functions, spinors and differential forms.
Let $M$ be either a projective manifold $(M,Pi)$ or a pseudo-Riemannian manifold $(M,g).$ We extend, intrinsically, the projective/conformal Schwarzian derivatives that we have introduced recently, to the space of differential operators acting on symmetric contravariant tensor fields of any degree on $M.$ As operators, we show that the projective/conformal Schwarzian derivatives depend only on the projective connection $Pi$ and the conformal class $[g]$ of the metric, respectively. Furthermore, we compute the first cohomology group of $Vect(M)$ with coefficients into the space of symmetric con…
We give a complete classification of conformally covariant differential operators between the spaces of $i$-forms on the sphere $S^n$ and $j$-forms on the totally geodesic hypersphere $S^{n-1}$. Moreover, we find explicit formulæ for these new matrix-valued operators in the flat coordinates in terms of basic operators in differential geometry and classical orthogonal polynomials. We also establish matrix-valued factorization identities among all possible combinations of conformally covariant differential operators. The main machinery of the proof is the "F-method" based on the "algebraic Fouri…
Rapid progress has been made recently on symmetry breaking operators for real reductive groups. Based on Program A-C for branching problems (T.Kobayashi [Progr.Math.2015]), we illustrate a scheme of the classification of (local and nonlocal) symmetry breaking operators by an example of conformal representations on differential forms on the model space $(X,Y)=(S^n, S^{n-1})$, which generalizes the scalar case (Kobayashi--Speh [Memoirs of Amer.Math.Soc. 2015]) and the case of local operators (Kobayashi--Kubo--Pevzner [Lecture Notes in Math. 2016]). Some applications to automorphic form theory, m…
On locally conformally flat manifolds we describe a construction which maps generalised conformal Killing tensors to differential operators which may act on any conformally weighted tensor bundle; the operators in the range have the property that they are symmetries of any natural conformally invariant differential operator between such bundles. These are used to construct all symmetries of the conformally invariant powers of the Laplacian (often called the GJMS operators) on manifolds of dimension at least 3. In particular this yields all symmetries of the powers of the Laplacian $Δ^k$, $k\in…
We study higher form Proca equations on Einstein manifolds with boundary data along conformal infinity. We solve these Laplace-type boundary problems formally, and to all orders, by constructing an operator which projects arbitrary forms to solutions. We also develop a product formula for solving these asymptotic problems in general. The central tools of our approach are (i) the conformal geometry of differential forms and the associated exterior tractor calculus, and (ii) a generalised notion of scale which encodes the connection between the underlying geometry and its boundary. The latter al…
We give an explicit description of the full asymptotic expansion of the Schwartz kernel of the complex powers of $m$-Laplace type operators $L$ on compact Riemannian manifolds in terms of Riesz distributions. The constant term in this asymptotic expansion turns turns out to be given by the local zeta function of $L$. In particular, the constant term in the asymptotic expansion of the Green's function $L^{-1}$ is often called the mass of $L$, which (in case that $L$ is the Yamabe operator) is an important invariant, namely a positive multiple of the ADM mass of a certain asymptotically flat man…
There is a class of Laplacian like conformally invariant differential operators on differential forms $L^\ell_k$ which may be considered the generalisation to differential forms of the conformally invariant powers of the Laplacian known as the Paneitz and GJMS operators. On conformally Einstein manifolds we give explicit formulae for these as explicit factored polynomials in second order differential operators. In the case the manifold is not Ricci flat we use this to provide a direct sum decomposition of the null space of the $L^\ell_k$ in terms of the null spaces of mutually commuting second…
For a pseudo-Riemannian manifold $X$ and a totally geodesic hypersurface $Y$, we consider the problem of constructing and classifying all linear differential operators $\mathcal{E}^i(X) \to \mathcal{E}^j(Y)$ between the spaces of differential forms that intertwine multiplier representations of the Lie algebra of conformal vector fields. Extending the recent results in the Riemannian setting by Kobayashi-Kubo-Pevzner [Lecture Notes in Math.~2170, (2016)], we construct such differential operators and give a classification of them in the pseudo-Riemannian setting where both $X$ and $Y$ are of con…
We discuss contact invariant structures on the space of solutions of a third-order ordinary differential equation. Associated to any third-order differential equation modulo contact transformations, Chern introduced a degenerate conformal Lorentzian metric on the space of 2-jets of functions of one variable. When the Wuenschmann invariant vanishes, the degenerate metric descends to a proper conformal Lorentzian metric on the space of solutions. In the general case, when the Wuenschmann invariant is not zero, we define the notion of a causal geometry, and show that the space of solutions suppor…
Let $g_0$ be a smooth Riemannian metric on a closed manifold $M^n$ of dimension $n\geq 3$. We study the existence of a smooth metric $g$ conformal to $g_0$ whose Schouten tensor $A_g$ satisfies the differential inclusion $λ(g^{-1}A_g)\inΓ$ on $M^n$, where $Γ\subset\mathbb{R}^n$ is a cone satisfying standard assumptions. Inclusions of this type are often assumed in the existence theory for fully nonlinear elliptic equations in conformal geometry. We assume the existence of a continuous metric $g_1$ conformal to $g_0$ satisfying $λ(g_1^{-1}A_{g_1})\in\bar{Γ'}$ in the viscosity sense on $M^n$, to…
This is the last part of a series of articles on a family of geometric structures (PACS-structures) which all have an underlying almost conformally symplectic structure. While the first part of the series was devoted to the general study of these structures, the second part focused on the case that the underlying structure is conformally symplectic (PCS-structures). In that case, we obtained a close relation to parabolic contact structures via a concept of parabolic contactification. It was also shown that special symplectic connections (and thus all connections of exotic symplectic holonomy) …
The purpose of the present paper is to study the differential geometric properties of a quaternion CR-submanifold in a locally conformal quaternion Kaehler manifold.
This article is dedicated to solving the Einstein constraint equations with apparent horizon boundaries and freely specified mean curvature. The main novelty is that we study the conformal constraint equations assuming only low regularity.
We consider generalized gradients in the general context of $G$-structures. They are natural first order differential operators acting on sections of vector bundles associated to irreducible $G$-representations. We study their geometric properties and show in particular their conformal invariance.
For an even dimensional, compact, conformal manifold without boundary we construct a conformally invariant differential operator of order the dimension of the manifold. In the conformally flat case, this operator coincides with the critical {\sf GJMS} operator of Graham-Jenne-Mason-Sparling. We use the Wodzicki residue of a pseudo-differential operator of order $-2,$ originally defined by A. Connes, acting on middle dimension forms.
The equivalence problem for second order ODEs given modulo point transformations is solved in full analogy with the equivalence problem of nondegenerate 3-dimensional CR structures. This approach enables an analog of the Feffereman metrics to be defined. The conformal class of these (split signature) metrics is well defined by each point equivalence class of second order ODEs. Its conformal curvature is interpreted in terms of the basic point invariants of the corresponding class of ODEs.
In this paper we introduce a new family of operator-valued distributions on Euclidian space acting by convolution on differential forms. It provides a natural generalization of the important Riesz distributions acting on functions, where the corresponding operators are $(-Δ)^{-α/2}$, and we develop basic analogous properties with respect to meromorphic continuation, residues, Fourier transforms, and relations to conformal geometry and representations of the conformal group.
A spacelike surface $S\subset \mathbb{S}^4_1$ is marginally trapped if its mean curvature vector is lightlike. On any oriented spacelike surface $S \subset \mathbb{S}^4_1$ we show that a choice of orientation of the normal bundle $ν(S)$ determines a smooth map $G: S \to \mathbb{S}^3$ which we call the null Gauss map of $S$. We show that if $S$ is marginally trapped then $G$ is a conformal immersion away the zeros of certain quadratic Hopf-differential of $S$ and so the surface $G(S)$ is uniquely determined up to conformal transformations of $\mathbb{S}^3$ by two invariants: the normal Hopf dif…
We give explicit formulas for all odd order differential intertwinors on the subbundle of the bundle of spinor-$k$-forms that are annihilated by the Clifford multiplication over the odd dimensional standard sphere. The Dirac and Rarita-Schwinger operators appear in the case of $k=0$ and $k=1$, respectively.
Institute of Computing Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences（中国科学院计算技术研究所）；University of Chinese Academy of Sciences（中国科学院大学）
One of the most challenging problems in the domain of 2-D image or 3-D shape is to handle the non-rigid deformation. From the perspective of transformation groups, the conformal transformation is a key part of the diffeomorphism. According to the Liouville Theorem, an important part of the conformal transformation is the Mobius transformation, so we focus on Mobius transformation and propose two differential expressions that are invariable under 2-D and 3-D Mobius transformation respectively. Next, we analyze the absoluteness and relativity of invariance on them and their components. After tha…
In this paper, for an even dimensional compact manifold with boundary which has the non-product metric near the boundary, we use the noncommutative residue to define a conformal invariant pair. For a 4-dimensional manifold, we compute this conformal invariant pair under some conditions and point out the way of computations in the general.
We study uniqueness of positive solutions to the conformal scalar curvature equation on complete Riemannian manifolds with constant negative scalar curvature. We apply the results to show that conformal transformations on certain complete Riemannian manifolds of constant negative scalar curvature are isometries. We also study uniqueness of complete positive solutions and radial solutions.
We study the set of deRham classes of Lee $1$-forms of the locally conformally symplectic (LCS) structures taming the complex structure of a compact complex surface in the Kodaira class VII, and show that the existence of non-trivial upper/lower bounds with respect to the degree function correspond respectively to the existence of certain negative/non-negative PSH functions on the universal cover. We use this to prove that the set of Lee deRham classes of taming LCS is connected, as well as to obtain an explicit negative upper bound for this set on the hyperbolic Kato surfaces. This leads to a…
We construct a conformally invariant vector bundle connection such that its equation of parallel transport is a first order system that gives a prolongation of the conformal Killing equation on differential forms. Parallel sections of this connection are related bijectively to solutions of the conformal Killing equation. We construct other conformally invariant connections, also giving prolongations of the conformal Killing equation, that bijectively relate solutions of the conformal Killing equation on $k$-forms to a twisting of the conformal Killing equation on (k - l)-forms for various inte…
The article contains a brief description on the study of conformal scalar curvature equations, and discusses selected topics and questions concerning the equations in open spaces.
The Courant bracket defined originally on the sections of the vector bundle $TM \oplus T^*M \to M$ is extended to the direct sum of the 1-jet vector bundle and its dual. The extended bracket allows to interpret many structures encountered in differential geometry in terms of Dirac structures. We give here a new approach to conformal Jacobi structures.
We answer to the question whether a system of the 3rd order ODEs describes geodesics of a conformal structure. We construct a functor from a category of conformal geometries to a category of Cartan geometries associated to the 3rd order ODEs systems. Explicit formulas which define the family of all equations on conformal geodesics are given in the last section of the article.
We demonstrate that twisted equivariant differential K-theory of transverse complex curves accommodates exotic charges of the form expected of codimension=2 defect branes, such as of D7-branes in IIB/F-theory on A-type orbifold singularities, but also of their dual 3-brane defects of class-S theories on M5-branes. These branes have been argued, within F-theory and the AGT correspondence, to carry special SL(2)-monodromy charges not seen for other branes, but none of these had previously been identified in the expected brane charge quantization law given by K-theory. Here we observe that it is …
A conformal metric $g$ with constant curvature one and finite conical singularities on a compact Riemann surface $Σ$ can be thought of as the pullback of the standard metric on the 2-sphere by a multi-valued locally univalent meromorphic function $f$ on $Σ\backslash \{{\rm singularities}\}$, called the {\it developing map} of the metric $g$. When the developing map $f$ of such a metric $g$ on the compact Riemann surface $Σ$ has reducible monodromy, we show that, up to some M{\" o}bius transformation on $f$, the logarithmic differential $d\,(\log\, f)$ of $f$ turns out to be an abelian differen…
